I blog because...

I got tagged by Chris to list my reasons for blogging. I tried to do it in point form like he did, but I couldn't go beyond three lines. Plus, for every line, I felt like I had to explain myself further, so that draft got tossed...

I blog because it helps me think. I guess the actual words on a screen (or on paper, for that matter) gives me a heightened sense of objectivity. I have often re-read past entries, only to cringe at how childish, petty, or unreasonable I'd sounded. And I've learnt to think before I write, and before I speak. It gives me practice for real life, and reminds me that I should be careful if when I thrash around tennis balls in my little room -- they may come back to hit me, and always when I least expect them to.

I blog because it helps me fulfil my compulsive need for organisation. Like how, when I mention someone by name, I have to link to the last post that I mentioned them. This way, if you keep clicking on their names, you'll get all the entries that mention that person, in reverse chronological order. Get it? Yeah, I didn't think so. I'm still bothered about how to work into the system the entries where I mention a group of friends, without pinpointing specific ones. (You see what I mean about the compulsivity.)

I blog because stringing words into semi-coherent sentences is one of the few things that I can actually manage. Well, that pretty much speaks for itself.

I blog because it's cathartic. I'm still learning the difference between getting things off my chest and shooting my mouth off. Sometimes it doesn't even feel like the line exists. During those grey-area moments, the drafts just sit around until I decide whether to delete or publish them.

I blog because I'm learning how to prioritise. I don't talk much about political issues or headline news much, over here; it doesn't mean I don't care. It's just that I've learnt that, when you are so far away, it is close to impossible to know all of the sides to a story; even the horse is not always reliable. I may have, on more than a few occasions, shot down people whose policies/principles ran contrary to (my concept of) basic human decency; I can recall a couple of instances where I may have banged my fist on the table while watching snippets of Parliament sessions, shouting incredulously at the top of my voice: "HE DID NOT JUST SHAMELESSLY QUIVER HIS LIP ON TV!" But I don't always feel the need to put into writing every single opinion and instance of objection. I will stand up for what I stand up for when I stand up for them. (If you wish to seek further clarification on what I think about the war in Iraq, we can have a conversation.) But I want to document what is first and foremost in my life -- the people whom I hold close, and the rare moments of victory. When I have time and energy left over, then I'll try and save the world.

I blog because it's fun! Some things are just too cute to not share, and blogging saves me the trouble of mass e-mailing. Ooh, like this:



I mean, how cute is that? I really, really like the clasp, and would've bought the purse if not for the fact that it has a total holding capacity of, like, two coins. (Okay, so much for organisation. Moving on...)

I blog because my words are one of the few things I have that I can consign to posterity. Morbid? Maybe. Having been forced to confront mortality too many times than I would've liked, I try my best to let the people I care for know I feel as much as I can; it's now or possibly too late. But so many of these people have given me so much -- some days just knowing that they're there is the only thing that gets me through -- that it doesn't ever feel that I've done enough. If I can give them something that will erase any doubt that they might have of how much they've touched my life... I'll just try.

I blog because someone is reading what I'm writing. This isn't necessarily a priority, and the main reason why I started blogging was just to transfer my thoughts to a medium that was out of reach of my not-so-tech-savvy parents (hur hur). (Of course, things have changed much since then, and I wouldn't mind now if my parents ever stumbled upon my blog. I just hope that they don't find anything that'd upset them.) Even though the archives of this blog date back only to November of last year, the profile page will more accurately tell you that I've been blogging since January 2002. There used to be a generation of blogging where we just wrote, without comments and stat counters, and where social hierarchy was confined to our world offline. But I will readily admit that it's nice to hear more than my own echo. So, here's a big thank you to all who've left nice notes, and even to the lurkers -- which Sitemeter inevitably whispers the presence of. :)

SO. What are your motivations for blogging? I'm tagging a l, Woof!, and... Ball.of.Yarn? Let's see how it goes. And if anyone else wants to do it, please feel free to, and drop me a note -- I'd love to read why you blog. :)